Closer
by juliashappyfish
Summary: When Derek offers a downcast Casey to come with him on a road trip, she quickly realizes that she might be in for more than she bargained for. AUTHOR'S NOTE: I'm not updating this fic anymore, sorry!
1. Chapter 0

This is a re-posted fic… this chapter hasn't been posted though. Unnoticeable changes in the following two chapters. The rest is too come :)

**Closer**

_(now)_

Casey sat anxiously in the passenger seat, looking frightfully at the growing crowd outside the window. After a few moments, she finally spotted Derek dragging a struggling Sam to the car with Simon, another player on their team. Funny how just a few hours ago, Derek and Sam were the ones engaged in a fist fight. Yet here is, Derek Venturi, best friend extraordinaire, pulling Sam away from harm, not to mention from probable public humiliation.

The things you do for the people you care about.

Thinking of the implications and weight of that sentence, Casey closed her eyes in apprehension. She had wanted to escape the isolation of her former school, now she was starting to rethink her spontaneous decision to put aside her precious self-oriented life. _Yes_, the things you do for the people you care about.

The back door opened and the taunting became louder. She had droned them out for the past five minutes but couldn't help the last few words as they rang loud and clear in the frosty air.

"You fucking wimp. Can't fight your own battles," she heard a male voice yell from the vicinity of the crowd. It was probably from the guy Sam had randomly decided to punch. Derek and Simon practically threw their friend into the back seat. Their anger was almost palpable, especially Derek's. But honestly, they had every reason to be angry. Or so she thought. It's not like her and Derek had officially confirmed they were a couple, but that's where it seemed to be heading. Sam couldn't have been _that _oblivious.

She sighed. _Her and Derek_ was a whole other story and definitely not of concern at that particular moment. She waved a small goodbye to Simon, who for his part made a quick dash for his car before anyone stopped him. Derek heatedly started the engine, visibly ignoring Sam's incoherent mumbling. Casey looked behind her and shook her head in disappointment at the pungent smell of alcohol.

Sam must have really loved Tiffany.

Casey stayed quiet, not quite knowing how to deal with this angry Derek. It would probably be best if she just waited until he calmed down a bit. She was shaken out her silence when Derek suddenly pulled the car to stop on the side. He hit his head on the steering wheel deliberately. He repeated the motion several times.

Casey reached her arm out and rubbed his shoulder in a comforting gesture.

"Can you drive?" he asked, his face still firmly settled on the wheel. She nodded but croaked out a yes when she realized he couldn't see her. He opened his door without another glance. Casey stopped him when they met halfway in front of the door. His head was bent low.

"Derek," she said quietly, lifting his chin up despite her cold hand. His eyes finally met hers and her insides tightened at the tortured expression on his face.

"What's wrong?" she continued when she saw that it wasn't only anger that was brewing on his otherwise handsome features.

His forehead fell to hers and he closed his eyes.

"I was so mad I almost didn't go after him," he whispered.

"But you did," Casey corrected, trying to understand where he was going with this.

He pulled away from her and rubbed his palms roughly over his face. "Yeah, 'cause you told me to."

"I don't understand," Casey mumbled quietly.

"He could have gotten hurt. Beaten to a pulp considering the size of the other guy."

She simply nodded, urging him to continue.

"I _really_ didn't want to go after him. If you hadn't forced me, he could have–" his voice caught a bit at the end. With a pang of sympathy, she finally realized that the other emotion playing so openly on his face was _guilt_. Guilt for almost _not_ rescuing his friend, after _said_ friend had hurt him.

Casey wrapped her arms around him; he responded in kind, burying his head deep into the crease between her shoulder and neck. She was surprised at the intensity of the embrace. It was a rare thing to be the end of such obvious affection with Derek, especially if you weren't Marty. Casey hadn't even been privy to this rather emotional side in the past few weeks, despite their growing closeness.

When they finally pulled apart, she was happy to see a small smile creep up on his lips.

"Sorry," he apologized, almost bashfully so. Her smile grew at the sight.

"For what?" she said, feigning ignorance as she continued her trek to the driver's door. His grin widened. His boyish expression only warmed her heart.

They drove in silence for the rest of the ride. She helped him carry Sam up to their hotel room. The task wasn't easy, but they surprisingly managed.

"Thank God for elevators," Derek muttered under his breath as he positioned his friend to lean on the corner walls. Casey made a vague sound of agreement. She couldn't shake the strange onslaught of butterflies that had officially settled in her stomach after their little heartfelt moment.

"You okay?" Derek asked. The butterflies did a somersault when he took her hand and pulled her to him. "Not too traumatized for the day?" His tone was teasing but she could detect a slight hint of seriousness.

She couldn't help but remembering Sam's curious words earlier that day. "Derek is insanely crazy about you. It's fucking _amazing_," he had said, his words slurring spectacularly. "Even back in school… shock of my life. The great D in love, with you, no less." He had lifted his drink in some form of salute but ended up losing half its content. She was pretty sure Derek would have been even angrier if he had walked in a bit earlier to catch those particular words.

"No, I'm fine," she said truthfully, brushing off her last thoughts. In fact, she was more than fine. But she wasn't very well going to say _that_. The situation was far from appropriate. She stood on her tip toes and kissed him chastely on the lips. Derek looked at her for a second before his gaze turned to Sam.

"I'm still sorry," he said genuinely, turning his head back to her, and wrapped his arms around her shoulders. "I honestly thought Tiffany and him were going to last forever. He's crazy about her."

"I know," Casey said, but was cut-off when the elevator opened to their floor. Derek disentangled himself from her and wrapped Sam's arm around his neck instead. Casey did the same with his other arm.

When Sam was safely snoring in the bed, Casey spoke up. "You can stay with me tonight."

Sharing the same bed wasn't necessarily normal for them considering the novelty of their relationship, but the situation was a bit complicated.

"Are you sure?" he said hesitantly. "'Cause I'm sure he'll be passed out 'til noon tomorrow and he's a quiet sleeper."

Casey laughed despite herself. "It's cute that you know these things." She grabbed his PJ's, lying haphazardly on the small couch in the corner of their room. "Go get your toothbrush. I'll wait for you in my room." She left after giving him a slight kiss on the forehead. She smiled as she exited, having noticed the stupid look on his face.

She opened her room, pulled her own night clothes from her bag and entered the bathroom to brush her teeth. She left the door ajar in case Derek knocked.

As she looked at herself in the mirror, she vaguely wondered how she suddenly found herself in this moment right now. From a year and a half of living alone in Montreal to a hotel room in Ottawa, waiting for Derek… the step-brother whom she was now sure to be in love with.


	2. Chapter 1

**Closer  
**Chapter One  
When Bad Days Must Come to an End

_  
(two months earlier)_

After filling out the proper forms for the truck rental, Casey exhaled tiredly. She was going home. She was moving back.

"You forgot to put your initials, 'mam," the attendant said dully. Casey complied. When she was sure everything was done, she slowly made her way out of the truck rental store. She was glad all her stuff would fit in their smallest truck. It wasn't exactly cheap.

But it had to be done. A year and a half had gone by and she still felt like a stranger here. She had made a few friends, but nothing too serious. Maybe it was her fault, or maybe not. It didn't really matter at this point. She was moving back home and she couldn't _be_ more relieved.

She continued walking on the crowded sidewalk. She had to admit, it was rather pretty how the lights all twinkled and the Christmas songs played this time around. Downtown Montreal was a beautiful thing, but Hamilton was her home. And after what happened a week ago, she was sure, now more than ever, that she was better off in Ontario.

Amanda had been good to her. She was one of the only two real friends Casey could admit to in this city. She was her roommate of a year now and would have come to her aid in a second if she had been here. Casey squirmed at the dark memory. She still had a hard time dealing with it, even if nothing horribly awful had happened. The girl who had found her, Stacy was her name, made sure of that. Casey owed her so much.

Casey stopped at her favorite coffee shop, craving the white mocha she'd grown quite fond of. She smiled at the new Christmas-themed cups. It was hard not to let the Christmas spirit get to her, however dejected she might be feeling. She quietly sipped on her drink, unable to avoid the half-hearted glare the employee kept sending her way. He was the other valued friend in Montreal. If he wasn't gay, she'd probably be all over him. The guy was near perfect. Good-looking, charming and smart, he could do no wrong. _And_ he was a musician.

"Casey," he greeted happily as he approached her table.

"Hey Alex," Casey said happily. She smiled in an odd moment of genuine affection towards her good friend; it's like the guy never had a bad day. He sat across from her and gestured to her cup.

"I could have given you that for free, you know," he said dubiously.

"You were busy," Casey said simply. He had given her so many free drinks in the past, not to mention a few deserts here and there, that it was staggering, really.

"_Please_, McDonald. Three extra minutes of your time could have saved you two dollars," he said, making a show of rolling his eyes. "You just feel bad because you feel like your committing some horrendous crime."

He laughed when her expression turned sheepish.

"Yeah, well. I would have been encouraging disobedience," she said in her defense.

"Alright, alright. We've already had this argument before. I was just under the impression that you'd let it go and just let me do what I please."

"Fine," she relented. She _had_ agreed to that, after all. Alex was stubborn as a rock. And she wouldn't be passing around here much after two days anyways. With a slight pang, Casey realized that she was indeed going to miss Alex, Alex who has been nothing short but amazing to her in the past year.

"What's wrong?" he asked in concern, having noticed the change in her countenance.

Casey sighed, a nervous edge creeping up in her voice. _Better tell him now than later_, she thought dismally. The poor guy would probably be devastated if she just stopped showing up, without ever saying goodbye.

"I'm moving back to Hamilton," she said quietly, biting her lip in nervousness.

And she thought it'd be _easy_ to leave.

"Oh," was all he said as he straightened up. After a short pause where Casey was determinedly looking anywhere but him, he spoke.

"I thought you liked it here." His voice was tentative, but she could detect a slight note of hurt.

"I did. I just don't think I've made any progress here. I realized that I don't really need to attend McGill to be a good psychologist. The University of Toronto is probably just as good. It just has less funding. I'm not in it for the research anyway," she explained. "And I kinda miss being home."

Alex nodded in understanding. "You sure this isn't just the Christmas blues?" he tried, a smile quirking on his lips.

She shook her head. "I've been thinking about it for a while now and after what happened last week, I think it'd be for the best."

"I don't understand. You don't think Toronto has people drugging other people's drinks?" Alex frowned in disbelief. "I mean, I get why you'd wanna go home. But I don't think it should be because you think it's safer there than it is here."

"I know, Alex. I just," she took a deep breath before continuing. "When Stacy asked me who she could call... I had no idea what to tell her. It was awful. Amanda had already gone back to Ottawa. And I couldn't call anyone who I was comfortable enough to see me in such a vulnerable position. I only had the gal to call you in the morning when I was slightly more oriented."

"Case, you could have called me the moment you realized you weren't okay. I would have come in a heartbeat," Alex declared fervently. Casey smiled sadly, willing herself not to cry. Alex was really sweet sometimes. Still, the truth was that however much she cared about Alex, she wasn't ready to let him see her with all her guards down… in the worst possible way to boot.

"That's sweet," she said quietly. "But I can't solely depend on you or Amanda when things get rough."

"But this was completely out of your power," Alex countered. Her face scrunched up. That whole night wouldn't have been such a nightmare if she hadn't taken the wrong cup. But she _had_. "It was an accident, wasn't it?"

"Yeah, but–"

"Believe it or not, Case, people will make mistakes sometimes. And it's okay to ask for help."

Casey didn't answer.

Alex sighed sadly. "I can't convince you, can I?"

She shook her head. It was an unfortunate answer, but it was true. She was determined to go back home.

"Is Amanda aware?" he asked, getting up as he wasn't exactly on break.

"I called her yesterday," Casey mumbled quietly. "We spoke for two hours. She wasn't too happy, but she understood. Made me promise I wouldn't lose touch."

Casey looked up at him expectantly. She didn't want to lose Alex either. His expression softened at her distressed face. He moved to hug her and whispered quietly, "I wish you didn't have to leave."

All she could do was mumble a soft sorry, trying to contain her tears. He pulled back and wiped a small tear trying to escape from the corner of her eye. "We'll keep in touch, don't worry."

She nodded, keeping her face down so she wouldn't cry. "But you do realize that that means no more free white mochas for you, right?"

She let out a breath of laughter. "I think I'll live." He hugged her again.

"As long as you don't find another Second Cup employee who will give you free drinks. That's totally _unforgivable_." She nodded into his chest, her body faintly shaking in laughter.

"When are you leaving?" he inquired as she disentangled herself from him.

"In two days." She cringed when his eyebrows rose in surprise.

"Early, much?" he said exasperatedly, but he let it pass. "How 'bout we go for dinner tomorrow then, my treat. It'll be a temporary farewell dinner of sorts."

Casey smiled. "Deal." He kissed her on the forehead before walking back to the counter. She watched him leave in a sort of bittersweet haze. Feeling a tad lighter than mere moments ago, she exited the shop.

She had boxes to pack.

0

She sipped on her coffee as she watched the dead trees pass by. Road trips were so much more fun when she was a passenger and not a driver. She had to keep a diligent focus on the road, especially considering her lingering hangover headache.

"Stupid Alex," she cursed under her breath, yet with unmistakable fondness in her tone. She wasn't more than an hour away by now. She made it a point not to make any stops, but she caved when she saw the large Tim Hortons sign. She was never one to refuse coffee.

She didn't regret it as she was currently enjoying her large coffee. She was jolted out of mindless thinking when her phone rang. She was surprised to see it flashing Derek's name.

"Derek," she said, unable to keep the shock from her voice.

"Hello to you too, Case," Derek laughed.

"Sorry, I was just surprised is all," she said. "What's up?"

"I just thought I'd tell you that Toronto is playing McGill next week," he said. She could practically hear the smirk in his voice. "To root for me or for your school, hmmm… quite a decision to make."

Casey laughed. "I heard about that."

"Of course you did. When are you not on top of your game?" Derek added. "So can you make it to Toronto by then, 'cause I know you're coming for the holidays and all."

"I'm already on my way home," she declared blithely.

"Really?" he said in surprise. "No one told me you were coming early."

"Well, it was kinda of a quick decision. I asked my teacher to give me his final exam earlier and for some unexplainable reason, he accepted," Casey admitted easily.

"That's lucky," he quipped with jest. "Only you can pull something like that, Spacey."

"Yeah," she laughed a little, knowing she had to tell him she was moving back permanently soon. "Um, I've been meaning to tell you… I'm coming back for good."

"What do you mean?" Derek said curiously.

"I'm moving back to Hamilton. I transferred to the University of Toronto. I'll only be able to start next fall, though," she explained. She and Derek had gotten closer over the past years. She didn't think he'd mind her going to the same university. It'll be nice for her to have a familiar face around, that's for sure.

"Wow," was all he managed to say.

"McGill wasn't for me, I guess," she added.

"What, did you trip on their stairs? Can't face the humiliation without me to save your rep, uh?" he teased.

"_Precisely_," she said sarcastically, rolling her eyes even if he couldn't see her. "Anyways, I'm driving right now and I'm not really comfortable talking on the phone, so I'll see you soon, alright?"

"Fine, you wimp," he exhaled in mock-annoyance. "Don't hit a deer."

"Bye Derek," Casey sang, ignoring his last comment.

"Bye Spacey."

She couldn't help the relieved grin from spreading across her face. She was going back home.


	3. Chapter 2

**Closer  
**Chapter Two  
Time and Distance

Trying to contain her excitement, Casey parked her car close to the house. She hoped someone at home was willing enough to help her bring all her stuff in. It was rather cold. She beeped, signaling her arrival, and not a minute later, she spotted George waving happily at her from the doorway. He was wearing his jacket and made his way to the car. She fastened her own coat and stepped out of the car to hug him. They exchanged niceties. She felt her heart constrict at the affection seeping in his voice.

He helped her get a few boxes in when Edwin came out to help as well. George hugged her again and excused himself to go get Nora from work. When he drove away, she finally got a proper look at Edwin. Looking abnormally taller than she last saw him in summer, she beamed up at him.

"Oh my God, Edwin!" she cried. "I saw you like four months ago. How does that happen?" She gestured wildly to his length.

The idiot just shrugged coolly.

"So you're moving back in with us?" he said, trying to sound casual.

"I'm not gonna take your room," Casey stated, laughing.

"Then where are you going to stay then?" he inquired conspicuously as he grabbed a box and waited for her to grab one too. He didn't even bother denying the fact that it was his more worrying concern.

"I think I'll camp out in Derek's room until I find my own place," she said. She hadn't told Derek yet, but really, where else was she supposed to stay?

"You do know he usually stays with us during most of the holidays?"

"Yes, then I'll camp out in the attic like I usually do when everyone is here. Jeez Edwin, way to ruin a welcoming," she joked. She didn't understand where he was coming from with this. She often visited during her days off from school and never had a problem. She wondered if he really did mind her moving back in.

"I understand how it throws things off and everything, but it shouldn't be for long…" she babbled starting to rethink her spontaneous decision.

"_No_, no," Edwin insisted as they entered the house and dropped the boxes. They moved back outside with Edwin persisting.

"It's just so sudden, you know. Not because you're moving back in, but because you suddenly _decided_ to move back home. I know you weren't very happy in Montreal… but now you're missing a whole semester… did something happen?"

She didn't think she'd be called on it so soon, but Edwin was always clever.

"I guess you could say something happened… but that's not really why I'm moving back… what happened, well, it was just the straw that broke the camel's back, you know?," she answered honestly.

"What happened?" Edwin said softly, probably sensing it was a sensitive subject.

"You know, I don't really wanna talk about it now… I'm fine, though," Casey said sincerely. Edwin accepted her reluctant answer without another word. They finished unloading the car as he started asking her about trivial things.

"So what's new with you?" Casey asked as she shrugged her coat and scarf off. "Lizzie tells me you have a new girlfriend." She laughed when Edwin actually blushed. They were in the kitchen by then.

"I'm gonna kick her," he muttered.

"It was all in good intention. She wasn't making fun, don't worry," Casey reassured, even if it was a lie.

"So you know we met at a science convention?" Edwin groaned, rubbing his palms over his face as he slouched back on the kitchen stool. She was distinctly reminded of Derek. He used to always do the same gesture when he was exasperated or embarrassed.

"You _cannot_ tell Derek," Edwin suddenly said, pointing an accusatory finger at her.

"I won't," she said, trying not to laugh at his obvious fear.

"He will make fun of me for _the rest of my life_. Do you understand?" he said, jumping out his seat, almost in hysterics.

"Relax, Ed. I'm not gonna tell Derek. I promise," she said sincerely. "Plus, I think it's cute."

"You would," he muttered.

"Hey! I was on your side! I said I wasn't going to tell Derek," she scoffed. "Be nice."

"Tell Derek what?" Lizzie said as she hugged Casey tightly from behind. Lizzie looked up at Edwin and broke into laughter. "About Edwin's girlfriend, right! I told you it was hilarious."

Edwin rounded on Casey. "You said she wasn't making fun of me! You lied," he said dramatically.

"_I_ can't believe you believed her," Lizzie snorted. Casey looked sheepish, but merely shrugged.

"How do I know you're not lying about your promise?" Edwin continued, ignoring Lizzie's comment.

"Come on, Edwin, it's me. I won't tell him if you don't want me to, alright?" Casey said in amusement.

"He doesn't need to know anyway, right?" Casey added. "Maybe in a few years when he's slightly more mature…"

"Exactly," Edwin sighed in relief. He turned back to Lizzie. "Now that's a good stepsister," he said, gesturing toward Casey. Lizzie just huffed in response.

"Cool down, loverboy. I'm happy for you, alright? Kay is a nice girl and _no_, she doesn't look nerdy at all. Didn't I tell you this, Casey?"

"She did," Casey confirmed. Lizzie had indeed made fun of the situation, but she had still seemed genuinely happy for Edwin and thought rather highly of his new girlfriend.

"_Fine_," he relented, falling back on the chair.

"Casey!" Lizzie cried in excitement, eager to change the subject. "You've come back home! I'm so happy. And no, you're not taking my room."

"Obviously," Casey said sardonically.

"If we don't stake it now, we'll be overpowered," Marty said matter-of-factly as she entered the kitchen. She wrapped her arms tightly around Casey's waist. "And you can't have my room either."

Casey shook her head good-naturedly. "If Derek kills me, then I'm blaming all of you."

"Pff, _like he could ever_," Lizzie muttered under her breath.

She narrowed her eyes. "What is that supposed to mean?"

Lizzie looked up at her with wide-eyes, but quickly recovered. "Derek is no match for you. You'll eat him right up." Casey wasn't convinced but her response got lost when Edwin huffed.

"_Please,_ Derek can trounce your sister in a second. Let there be no doubt," he declared importantly, raising a finger for emphasis.

"You know… I was thinking," Casey said as she sighed melodramatically. "I haven't spoken to Derek in such a long time… I'm sure he'd like to know what's going on with his family." She sent a pointed look to Edwin who quickly understood.

"You're by far the best. No questions asked," he acquiesced.

"That's sad, Edwin. Even _I_ wouldn't have said that," Lizzie said as she laughed at Edwin.

"She's got incriminating material against me," he cried out sheepishly.

"So do I!" Lizzie responded in earnest.

"Yes, but I've got material against you too… so we're on equal grounds." This seemed to shut Lizzie up. She rolled her eyes but didn't continue the conversation.

"What's her name again?" Casey said. She knew that this wasn't Edwin's first girlfriend, but she never seemed to be around when he was in a relationship, even if she did spend a good part of her holidays at home.

"Kayla," Edwin said fondly.

Casey was gushing at his a love-struck expression when she noticed for the first time that Nora and George had been standing near the kitchen doorway.

As she greeted her mother with unrestrained enthusiasm, she couldn't help but feel that someone was missing.

0

Her bed was shaking. She twisted when she realized it wasn't the stale the mattress she had gotten used to in Montreal, but a soft plushy one similar to Derek's bed back home. She sighed contently when she remembered that she _was_ home. That she _was_ on Derek's bed. If only Derek knew how many times she had slept on this very bed, he probably _would_ kill her.

The bed continued shaking violently and she practically felt the intruding light on her eyelids. She groaned, hoping no one was trying to wake her up, but the culprit persisted.

"I wanna sleep," she mumbled, burrowing further into the bed.

"And here I thought you were a morning person," she heard someone say, someone who distinctly sounded like Derek. But in her sleep-induced state, she dismissed it.

"You better wake up soon, sunshine, or I'll have to resort to more dire measures. It is my bed, _after all_," he continued.

"Not right now," she muttered, slowly opening her eyes. He gasped in mock-offense, bringing a hand to his chest.

"Getting braver every year, McDonald."

She rubbed her eyes tiredly and moved to lean on her elbows.

"I can take you, Venturi."

"Oh, I'm sure. Now get up. We're meeting Sam and Tiffany for breakfast in 20," Derek laughed as he moved off the bed and dropped his duffel bag beside the rest of his bags. She hadn't even heard him come in.

"What times is it?" Casey said as she fell back on the bed.

"Almost eight."

"Who are you and what have you done with Derek?" Casey said incredulously as she sat up and shot him a surprised look.

"Sam wanted to leave early, so I thought what the hell," Derek explained nonchalantly. "Now shut up and get ready." He exited the room, chuckling at her offended expression.

She huffed but complied. She quickly found a change of clothes and ran to the bathroom. She knew Derek would kill her if she washed her hair, so she settled for a rapid body shower and saved the rest for later.

After twenty-five minutes, she was finally ready. She would have probably taken more time to fix her hair if Derek hadn't pulled her out the bathroom.

"You look fine, Case." Since everyone was still fast asleep, he slowly trudged down the stairs with Casey close at his heel, trying to make as little noise as possible. When they at last got into the car, he spoke up.

"We're gonna have to work something out regarding your current living arrangement." He sent her a boyish smile, one that had been rarely addressed to her back in their school days, but was rather common in her last visits.

"Yeah, well. It's your room or the attic… and if I could keep out of there as long as I can, I will," Casey said with determination, earning herself another deep chuckle from Derek.

"Alright, calm down there, Gonzales. I kinda like my bed, how about we make a deal?" he suggested easily. "While I'm here, I'll take it for a week and a half, and you could take it for the rest."

Casey narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "And how long will you be staying?"

His expression turned mischievous. "A week and a half."

"You're such an ass," Casey mumbled, determinedly trying to keep her lips from quirking upwards.

"_Perhaps_," Derek said in all seriousness. "But an ass you love." She really couldn't help her smile at that point.

"Actually, I'm staying for two weeks," he revealed cheekily, laughing when she shook her head in incredulity.

"Where are we going, anyway?" she asked after slapping him good-naturedly on the shoulder.

"Smelly-Nelly's," he said proudly. "I haven't been there in such a long time. I mean, do you really think I would have foregone sleep for just _any _breakfast restaurant?"

"No," she admitted, amused by his exuberance. They arrived not long after that. She was excited to see Tiffany whom Casey immediately grew a liking to when she met her last summer. Tiffany was Sam's sweet and incredibly friendly girlfriend. She had a bit of an eccentric side, but it made her all the more endearing.

Derek and Casey spotted them quickly when they entered the place. Casey greeted her old friends happily.

"You dyed your hair," Tiffany declared excitedly.

"I did," Casey said, caught a bit off guard. She _had _dyed it, but only a slight shade lighter. She didn't think anyone would notice. Both guys frowned and exchanged confused looks.

"It's lighter," Tiffany continued offhandedly.

"How do you know these things?" Derek inquired curiously, taking the seat beside Sam in the booth. Casey slid in beside Tiffany.

"I don't know," she laughed. "I notice colors, that's all. I _do_ paint. And every shade counts." She beamed up at them, clearly happy with her response. Her and Sam shared a secret look before he rounded on them.

"You guys are late."

Derek gestured wildly towards Casey. "All her fault. Missus had to fix her hair."

"You gave me twenty minutes to get ready!" she griped defensively.

"More than enough if you ask me," he said stubbornly.

"Alright, alright, forget I said anything." Sam held up his hands in surrender. "Let's order. I'm famished."

As they ate their food, Casey quickly learned that Tiffany had been accepted to a summer art program where she got to travel all over Europe. Tiffany spent almost half an hour animatedly going over all the places she'd be visiting. Her vibrant speech never ceased to captivate Casey, as well as everyone else around her.

Casey chanced a glance at Sam and smiled at his completely smitten expression. That was the second time in the span of 24 hours that she witnessed such an intense expression of love. Noel was the only one to ever look at her that way. Even Adam, who she dated for nine months back in Montreal, never graced her with a similar look.

Caught up in her thoughts, she didn't notice Derek looking at her fixedly, his face crinkling in mild snootiness. "Case?"

She looked up at him and finally jolted out of her daze when Derek's eyebrows rose in amusement. "You were gone there for a moment, Spacey."

Casey shrugged. "Just remembered something from Montreal," she said, hoping they'd it leave at that.

"Oh yeeeaaah. Derek said you were moving back," Sam said. "Montreal didn't do you good?"

"Wasn't my place," she admitted a bit reluctantly. She didn't want to get into it that much.

"Do they party hard?" Tiffany said, making Casey choke on her juice. "That's what I heard. Montrealers are apparently crazy partiers. Guaranteed to give you a good time." Tiffany tapped Casey on the back.

Derek regarded her contemplatively.

"I guess," she managed to say as her coughs subsided. It was ironic how the catalyst behind her decision to move back came from a rather crazy_ party_, or more like a _stupid mistake_ at a crazy party.

Fortunately, they started inquiring her about her classes and decidedly safer topics. Tiffany and Sam bid them farewell a little while after.

"Aren't you glad you got out of bed now?" Derek teased as he opened the door to the driver's seat.

She rolled her eyes. "Only because I got to see Sam and Tiffany."

"Now that's plain lying," Derek said, feigning offense. "You're in total denial. Admit you just wanted to spend time with me."

"And stroke your ever so big ego? I think I'll stick to _total_ denial, thank you very much," she countered, sarcasm dripping in her voice at her last remark.

The rest of the ride was spent with Derek trying to convince Casey that she had been in denial all her life. Apparently, she was unable to admit that she was never 'cool', if she were to use Derek's words.

As they entered the house, Derek made a beeline to the couch and fell back on it.

"You could sleep on your bed, Derek. I'm not going back to sleep," Casey told him. He nodded and made his way upstairs. She sighed contently, falling back on the couch and watched the twinkling Christmas tree. Derek had grown these past years. She remembered their senior year when Derek had suddenly stopped talking to her. And for two whole months, she simply couldn't figure out _why_. It was the strangest thing.

Merely two weeks before they graduated, the silence had become deafening, at least for her anyway. Still to this day, it was somewhat of a mystery. All he had told her was that he was tired of fighting. It made sense, though. Whenever they talked, they argued. It was understandable, then, that ceasing all communication between them would stop the fighting too.

But it was hard. Because however bad their fights might have been, there was always an undercurrent of affection. The fact that they weren't ready to admit it then didn't mean it wasn't there. It wasn't until her first trip back home from Montreal that they sealed some kind of friendship. From then on, they've talked, _really_ talked, more than they ever had before.

She didn't know if it was the result of some big revelation, or the deep-seated effect of time and distance. It had somehow made them closer.


End file.
